Lambrigg (house)

Lambrigg is an historical property close to Tharwa in the Australian Capital Territory which is listed by the ACT Heritage Council as a place of historical significance. It was the residence of William James Farrer who made a major contribution to the wheat industry by developing a strain of wheat that was resistant to wheat rust. Lambrigg was the site where Farrer conducted his work on genetic selection for his wheat varieties.

William James Farrer was born in 1845 in Westmorland England. His parents, who were farmers, were Thomas Farrer and Sarah Brunskill. He was academically very advanced and won scholarships and medals which took him eventually to Cambridge University where he obtained his Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1868. Soon after he contracted tuberculosis and, for health reasons, migrated to Australia in 1870 at the age of 25.

Not long after he arrived, he became a tutor at Duntroon in Canberra. He intended to buy a sheep station but because of financial problems he was unable to do this. He qualified as a surveyor in 1875 and for the next eleven years worked with the New South Wales Department of Lands.

In 1882 he married Nina De Salis at St Philip’s Anglican Church in Sydney. Nina was the daughter of Leopold De Salis and Charlotte Macdonald. She was born in 1848 and when she met William she was living on one of her father’s properties near Canberra called Cuppacumbalong. As a wedding present, Nina’s father, Leopold, gave her some land close to Cuppacumbalong. William Farrer called the property Lambrigg which was the name of the English village where his ancestors lived.

The Farrers did not live at Lambrigg after their marriage but remained at Cuppacumbalong. Lambrigg, which was only a short ride from Cuppacumbalong, was established as a domestic farm by William Farrer. Charlotte De Salis, his niece, describes how he erected a large orchard at the southern end of the property, a vineyard that ran next to it along the Murrumbidgee River and a large dam. He also planted a rose garden and some weeping willows near the river. There were also horses and sheep, cattle, goats, pigs, turkeys and fowls which came under Nina’s special care. At about this time Farrer began to plant his wheat for experimental purposes.

The first building at Lambrigg was a homestead erected mainly for the farm worker and his family to live in. This was a six-room house built of pise (mud). One room and a bedroom was reserved for William should he need to stay overnight. This building has been demolished and only the footings remain. However, there is a photo taken by the De Salis family in about 1900 which shows the homestead. (see photo below).

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